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Monday, December 29, 2014

I'm sure you all are dying to know what the kids got for Christmas. The suspense must be excruciating. I don't know how you made it this long already! No, but really, I know there are only about 3 people in the world that this stuff is interesting to (hi mom!), so this is mainly a recap for the grandparents and for posterity.

This is the scene that Santa left for the kids on Christmas Eve. All the stuffed animals (and wagons and dump trucks and chairs) from the basement found their way upstairs to hang out with the presents by the tree. It's a mystery to me how this happened, but apparently it used to happen at Ryan's house when he was a kid too, so it must run in the family. Mac was pretty blown away when he saw the display. I was trying to videotape him on the camcorder (so I don't have photos), but he was half in awe and half super pissed-off about the camcorder and nearly had a meltdown before he even walked into the room. Next year I'll sit back on the couch and watch, putting less pressure on him. Lesson learned.

It only took him a minute before he started digging into the presents. The first two items he opened were the ones I was the most excited about. He got some Tegu blocks and Magnatiles! Both have been opened, played with for 5 minutes and then immediately discarded. I thought these would be such a huge hit, but apparently not. I'm hoping his interest in these will grow over time.

He also got some vitamins, diapers, wipes and shampoo. Santa is pretty practical at times. Mac didn't care, he was just as happy unwrapping the vitamins as he was the blocks. At one point, he unwrapped a box and said, "Wow! A new box!" Bless his heart. He also got a Dust Buster and spent an hour vacuuming up dog-hair-tumbleweeds the house that afternoon. Thank you Santa.

Mim was a trooper and let Mac open all her presents. She's really good at sharing. Santa brought her a Twilight Turtle, a crib-side aquarium (which has already broken...p.o.s.), books, diapers, jammies and some pretty headbands. She was thrilled with it all. Obviously.

It didn't take long for Mac to discover his stocking and the chocolate contained therein. Santa was overly generous with Kisses and Kit-Kats (perhaps he had a bit too much wine the night before and thought this was a good idea), which resulted in the the candy being taken away after Christmas was abandoned by the toddler due to chocolate-induced mania. Note to self, hide the stocking until after breakfast.

Trucks, diggers and tractors seemed to dominate this year. Mac asked Santa for a digger, a tractor and a Marshall puppy (from Paw Patrol). He also got a special gift of two AMAZING John Deere tractors from a super-sweet kind-hearted soul (you know who you are) that were a huge hit! That combine (now named Frank) has plowed our entire house and kept him entertained way longer than I expected. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Another big hit was the Buzz Lightyear doll action figure that he got from his grandparents. Buzz has been by his side the entire weekend and the two have them have flown to Infinity and Beyond! a hundred times. It's adorable.

Other gifts included new play-doh, a couple books, jammies and two mini flashlights. I don't know what it is about flashlights, but this kid is obsessed with them. To get his very own flashlights was basically the highlight of the day. That Santa sure does know the way to Mac's heart.

Even though Mally was on the naughty list, Santa still brought both her and Sage a new toy, a bone, some treats and a ball. Jigs got some treats and a bird on a stick.

Monday, December 22, 2014

Now that our Christmas cards have been shipped and delivered I can share our fall family photos with you. The amazing Kristie from L Photographie in St. Louis took these of us in Forest Park. This session is what sparked Mac's Frosty the Snowman obsession, which is actually so stinking cute because he now sings the song all the time. Even though they're not "Christmasy," I just love the colors and the beautiful background and am so happy with the way they turned out.

And the winners...

Big thanks to Kristie for doing an amazing job on our photos, as always! Look at those big smiles out of Mac (that never happens in photos)! Love them all!

And thanks to Dacy from Mindful Closet for styling us! Dacy came over, sorted through our closets, helped narrow down our choices and even shopped for/provided my scarf and Mim's little jeggings. If you're ever in need of some styling help, she's so great to work with!